Monsoon rains wreak havoc: Lightning kills 71, IMD issues warnings for Tuesday

Heavy rains triggered flash floods in parts of Himachal Pradesh and the Jammu region on Monday even as the deaths due to lightning strikes in several states climbed to 71.

42 of those dead are from Uttar Pradesh. The maximum 14 fatalities were reported from Allahabad, followed by five deaths each in Kanpur Dehat and Fatehpur.

The number of people who died in separate incidents of lightning strikes on Sunday rose in Rajasthan to 23, including 12 in Jaipur.

In Himachal Pradesh's Dharamshala, flash floods triggered by heavy rains swept away cars and two buildings, videos of which were widely shared on the social media. The flash floods also damaged several buildings, including one housing a government school.

In Jammu's Kathua region, 11 people, belonging to a nomadic community, were rescued after flash floods following heavy rains. Several farm animals were, however, washed away.

The India Meteorological Department has issued an orange alert for Rajasthan and Jammu and Kashmir, and yellow alert for Himachal Pradesh, Uttarakhand and Uttar Pradesh for Tuesday with warning of heavy rains.